Chapter 64: The Supreme Way of Kimchi

  The glass jar brought by the back kitchen was soon placed in front of Zhou Yi.

  Through the transparent glass jar, this Sichuan pickled vegetable is still very authentic. The five colors are bright and eye-catching: red is chili pepper and carrot; green is broad bean and celery; white is radish and cabbage. After being marinated in the sauce, the colors have changed slightly, but they look more soft and natural, making people's appetite open up at a glance.

  Zhou Yi nodded secretly, it seems that the head chef of this old place is at least a strong second-rate cook, and it's not bragging to say that he is proficient in the three major cuisines of Lu, Chuan, and Yue.

  After opening the jar, a pungent and salty flavor came rushing out. Zhou Yi had already picked up his chopsticks, but after smelling this flavor, he shook his head and put down his chopsticks again.

  "Old Zhou, what's wrong with this dish?"

  Zhang Zhao observed their words and expressions, seeing Zhou Yi continuously shaking his head without daring to move, his heart sank.

  "Zhang Ge, you're overthinking..."

  "Just by the smell, I know that this dish is not only problem-free but also extremely well-made. Zhang Ge, the head chef you found is definitely not a mediocre cook. Just based on this jar of pickled vegetables, there are probably only a few chefs in the country who can make it better..."

  "What's wrong with you, little brother? You don't even move your chopsticks?" Zhang Zhuang suddenly exclaimed: "Could it be that this jar of pickled vegetables is made too well, and has already won against Changjin Restaurant, so little brother, you don't need to taste it anymore?"

  "That's not it. On the contrary, if you use this jar of pickled vegetables to fight, Zhang Ge, you will definitely lose."

  "Little brother, what's going on here..."

  Even if he clearly knew that he was facing a culinary god, Zhang Zhuo couldn't help but feel a little angry, thinking to himself: "Zhou, you're playing with me, aren't you?"

  "Zhang Ge, don't be in such a hurry..."

  "I said earlier that there are only a few chefs in the country who can make better Sichuan pickled vegetables than this, because the chefs of my Huaxia country have always looked down on pickles and how many will go to great lengths to study them carefully? So the real masters of pickling are not in the current food world, but among the people; for example, the artisans in Sichuan who specialize in making pickled vegetables, their pickled vegetables are the best..."

  "Take this jar of pickled vegetables for example... The knife work is exquisite, the color and nutritional combination are also reasonable, and the ingredients are carefully selected, showcasing Chef Yun's deep skills. Unfortunately, Chef Yun has not refined his pickling skills, but rather followed the general rules of cooking to make this dish, without truly grasping the essence of pickling..."

  "Ah, this dish has seven ingredients: green and red peppers, broad beans, celery, carrots, radish, and cabbage. They're all blended together to create a harmonious flavor, but each ingredient must retain its original taste. The cabbage should have the spiciness of the pepper, the crunch of the radish, the subtle aroma of the celery, and the richness of the broad beans, but its own sweetness must be the most prominent! All the other ingredients, including the peppers, must follow this principle to create a top-notch Sichuan pickled vegetable dish. Now, Zhang Ge, take a taste and see if Yun Da Chef has succeeded?"

  Zhang Zhuo picked up a piece of carrot and took a bite, sighing bitterly: "I used to eat this too, it tasted pretty good. How come after you said that, the more I eat, the less appetizing it becomes? However, your culinary god's mouth is also quite picky, if even Master Yun can't meet your requirements, those northerners probably won't be able to either?"

  "It's not necessarily so..."

  Zhou Yi shook his head and said, "Kimchi to Baozi is like Indian god oil to hungry ghosts in hell, or a cute little loli to a freaky corn. It's the foundation of their country, a regular at the dinner table. And this time, Changjin restaurant came prepared, they must have mobilized kimchi masters, it's not impossible to make top-notch kimchi."

  "Hey little brother, you'd better tell me, how can I make that top-notch kimchi you were talking about?"

  Zhang Zhuang was really anxious. If he let the stick make top-grade pickled vegetables, wouldn't he have to wait until Qingming Festival to open for business? In that case, it's not worth doing business, and he might as well withdraw from the food industry.

  "Yun Shifu's selection of materials, use of seasonings, and methods of pickling were all fine, but he failed to grasp the two most important points in making pickled vegetables."

  The Book of Changes says: "One is stirring, two is flipping! Zhang Ge, don't think that the stick's talk about clockwise and counterclockwise stirring kimchi is a joke. In fact, this is the kind of realization that can only be achieved after mastering the technique of making kimchi; these two points may be known to Master Yun as well, but he can't grasp them, so the flavor of this jar of kimchi will be slightly off."

  Zhang Zuo looked at Zhou Yi for a while, then suddenly patted his knee and burst out laughing: "Haha, little brother, you've said so much that I finally understand. You're not only a culinary god, but also a pickled vegetable god! Little brother, whether Zhang can cross the ocean to conquer the east and defeat the Japanese, and whether he can open for business normally, all depend on this great god of yours..."

  "It's probably too late to remake it now......" Zhou Yi shook his head and said, "Even I don't have a way."

  "What's going on? Am I supposed to admit defeat?" Zhang Zuo was so anxious that his hand almost shook, spilling Pu'er tea all over Zhou Yi.

  "Hey, Zhang Ge, be careful! I'm a poor man, this is the only suit I have for drinking tea, don't waste it..."

  "What's wrong with you...!" Zhang Zhuang said angrily, "At this time, you still care about clothes?"

  "Alright, Zhang Ge, don't be in a rush. I said it's too late to make kimchi now, but that doesn't mean there are no other ways. You've been rushing around since we met, and you even forgot the dishes I brought from the trunk..."

  Zhou Yi smiled and looked at Zhang Zuo. He delayed speaking until now for two reasons: first, to increase Zhang Zuo's anticipation and make it easier to sell the 4,000 jin of pickled radish at a sky-high price; second, to control the rhythm because Zhang Zuo was getting flustered, and also to let this big shot from Chu Du regain his confidence and composure. And thirdly, he had a bit of a mischievous streak - didn't those high-level experts on TV always reveal the answer at the very end? He wanted to imitate them...

  "What's with the dish?"

  Zhang Zuo was taken aback, then suddenly understood: "No way, Zhou younger brother, did you bring kimchi? That's not right, I didn't even tell you on the phone that Longjing restaurant is competing with kimchi, how did you know?"

  "I'm not a god, how can I predict the future?"

  Zhou Yi smiled and shook his head, saying: "I made some pickled vegetables myself and brought some samples for you to try, Brother Zhang. If possible, please help me sell them. I'm also short of money recently, and I still owe Liu Ge money."

  "Pickled vegetables can only be sold for a few dollars, don't joke around, okay? Zhang Ge, my place is at least five-star, you want me to sell pickled vegetables..."

  Zhang Zuo was about to say "little brother, you'd better give up", if you're short of money just ask your big brother directly. Suddenly seeing Zhou Yi's lightly smiling face, he immediately came to his senses: "Little brother, can I try some of this pickled vegetable?"

  Pickled vegetables and kimchi are originally close relatives, with a bit more soup that's not kimchi? Moreover, this is the pickled vegetable personally made by the current kitchen god.

  Zhang Zhuang wasn't stupid either, and instantly understood the connection between them. His eyes suddenly lit up...

  ***

  This dish of pickled vegetables in the style of Zhouyi was served in a plain black earthenware jar, which couldn't compare to the glass jar used for Sichuan-style pickles. But as soon as Zhang Zuo opened the jar, he immediately closed his eyes, wrinkled up his nose, and had an expression of intoxication all over his face.

  What a pure and salty flavor, what an exciting radish aroma...

  Looking at the pickled radish in the bowl, which was as white as jade, Zhang Zhuang forgot to use his chopsticks and directly grabbed a piece and threw it into his mouth.

  His eyes grew wider and wider, and finally became moist...

  "It's too delicious, it's too cool, I'm dead, I'm dead......"

  Zhang Zhuang's eyes were half-closed, his face flushed red, and he was sent to a high climax by this piece of pickled radish; He only felt endless pleasure coming in waves, making his whole body suddenly covered with goosebumps: "Why... why can pickled radish be so delicious? Oh... what kind of radish is this..."

  Creak... creak...

  When he got excited about eating, he didn't care to ask carefully. He buried his head in front of the jar and kept grabbing pickled radish into his mouth, and in the blink of an eye, half a jar was finished by him alone.

  "Zhang Ge, stop eating!"

  Zhou Yi grasped his hand, which was full of juice, and said with a mixture of laughter and tears: "Aren't you afraid of choking to death? If you want to eat, I have plenty, three thousand catties worth."

  "Zhou younger brother, I didn't expect that you could make pickled radish taste so good, truly a capable person can do anything..."

  Zhang Zhuang felt that the 15 million yuan consulting fee was well worth it, and excitedly grabbed Zhou Yi's hand, saying: "I want all three thousand catties of pickled radish, name a price..."

  "Easy does it," said Zhou Yi with a smile. "First use it to help you win this game, and then we'll talk. But I have to tell you, Zhang Ge, this radish is precious."

  "How expensive is it? I'll take it even if it's 1,000 yuan per catty, however much you have!"

  Zhang Zuo smiled and his whole face was filled with the words "Brother has money".

  P.S: Originally, I should have described the taste of radish here, which is the right way to do it. But now that I've written this, what can I write during the actual competition? So for now, I can only use Mr. Zhang's side profile as a hint: ) Everyone, please don't think I'm lazy or avoiding writing, it's just not the right time yet...

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